Chapter 8: Why are you crying?

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for opening one Low-Level Gift Box. You have obtained one 'Endless' Lighter!]

The system panel refreshed, and a golden dragon-shaped lighter appeared on it.

Huh???

Gu Tang was filled with question marks. Could a lighter actually be a prize?

[The 'Endless' Lighter has been placed in the system inventory. The host can view it at any time.]

She clicked on the inventory, and below the lighter's slot, there was a row of tiny text.

Gu Tang tapped to enlarge it, only to find it was the lighter's information description.

[Endless Lighter: Windproof, waterproof, and never runs out of fuel.]

Never runs out?

Gu Tang raised an eyebrow; this function was quite good.

In ancient times, making fire was a strenuous task.

Commoners generally used flint, while those with more substantial means could afford a fire steel.

The Gu family couldn't afford a fire steel. They supported two scholars, one large and one small, and they were so frugal they would practically split a single copper coin into ten pieces to spend.

Even the flint they currently used had been obtained by thick-skinned begging from their relatives.

In the month since Gu Tang had transmigrated, she had failed to learn how to use flint to start a fire every single time.

Using flint required patience and a delicate touch; every time Gu Tang struck it a few extra times, it would draw suspicious glances from the rest of the Gu family.

They would all scold her for being clumsy, saying that striking it so many times was a deliberate attempt to waste the family's flint, and they insisted Gu Tang pay them back in copper coins!

Gu Tang had snapped at them right then and there.

In her past life, she had seen people pay to work; she didn't expect to have to pay to do work in this life!

She couldn't afford the copper coins, so she simply refused to serve them!

Taking out the lighter, Gu Tang played with it in her hand. It was heavy and had a very premium feel.

The dragon's claw served as the button; with one press, a blue flame erupted from the dragon's head.

A golden dragon paired with a blue flame—it was, truth be told, quite striking.

After playing with it, she put it back into her inventory. From now on, she wouldn't have to struggle to make fire.

This green gift box was incredibly powerful, greatly boosting Gu Tang's confidence. She tapped twice on the remaining two gift boxes and opened them all at once.

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for opening one Mid-Level Gift Box. You have obtained one 'Never-Ending' Skincare Set!]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for opening one High-Level Gift Box. You have obtained one complete recipe for 'Backflow Incense'!]

[The 'Never-Ending' Skincare Set has been placed in the system inventory.]

[The complete recipe for 'Backflow Incense' has been placed in the system inventory.]

Whoa!

This incense was going to be amazing!

Gu Tang beamed with joy; both of these were precious items.

The 'Never-Ending' Skincare Set included five products: cream, lotion, essence water, serum, and body lotion.

Once used, it would make the skin delicate and tender, as white as snow and as smooth as mutton-fat jade.

The complete recipe for 'Backflow Incense' included recipes for both the incense itself and the incense burner.

The former would make her beautiful, and the latter would ensure she never had to worry about making a living.

Overall, the prizes drawn this time were exactly to her liking.

Taking out the Backflow Incense recipe and reading it carefully, Gu Tang discovered that while the incense itself was easy to make, the firing of the incense burner was somewhat complicated.

Given her current circumstances, the difficulty was quite high.

Of course, it wasn't entirely without solutions.

She could build a small kiln herself; it didn't need to be large, just big enough to hold a few incense burners.

After a moment of contemplation, Gu Tang thought this was an excellent idea and decided to try it later.

Putting the recipe back into her inventory, she took out the 'Never-Ending' Skincare Set. Gu Tang opened them one by one to sniff them, looking quite fascinated; the scent was a pleasant lotus fragrance.

Using the small silver spoon that came with it, she scooped out a bit and applied it to the back of her hand, rubbing it in gently. The hydration was visible to the naked eye.

This was wonderful; she would never have to endure the peeling and skin tightness caused by cold, dry weather again.

Since it was daytime, she didn't need the body lotion. Gu Tang placed the various skincare bottles on her couch and, following the skincare routine from her previous life, applied the products to her face, massaging them in carefully to absorb. She looked utterly content.

Even after transmigrating, she would remain a beautiful and fragrant girl.

After finishing her face and hands, Gu Tang returned the skincare products to the system inventory and held the back of her hand to her nose, sniffing it continuously.

When she had applied it just now, she was a bit worried the scent might be too strong, but now that it was on, she found the fragrance very light and not pungent at all; it was soothing and refreshing.

The more she sniffed, the more she loved it. Her mood became wonderful, and all her previous frustrations vanished.

While she was lost in the lotus scent, Gu Tang Ping'an's shouting suddenly came from the courtyard outside—

"Father! Uncle is back!"

Gu Tang jolted, instantly snapping back to reality.

Gu Liansheng was back?

She quickly climbed onto the couch and peered out through the gap in the window.

She heard her father, the messenger, walking out from the main hall, with Feng Shi pulling at him behind him. The mother and son were arguing about something.

"You little brat! Haven't you lost enough face yourself? Do you intend to bring your elder brother into your disgrace as well? Come back here! If you dare go shouting in the village, I will die right in front of you!"

"You want to die? Fine! You go ahead and take the first step. Once you've breathed your last, I'll immediately send the whole first branch of the family down with you, and then my family will follow right after!

The entire Gu family, young and old, will go together to the underworld to see our ancestors. Once we meet them, I'll tell them that you, dear, couldn't bear to leave your children and grandchildren behind and insisted that the whole family die together!

Tell me, once our ancestors find out about this, won't they praise you for being so virtuous and kind?"

These words made Feng Shi's heart tremble. She knew that if she actually sought death, this unfilial beast would truly dare to do such a thing!

Furious and unable to catch her breath, Feng Shi's vision went dark, and she slumped down onto the veranda, taking a long time to recover.

Gu Tang: "..."

As expected, the only person who could suppress Feng Shi was her father!

"Mother!!!"

A sharp scream suddenly rang out at the courtyard entrance.

Gu Tang pushed the window gap open a bit further and saw a shocked Gu Liansheng.

Gu Liansheng's face was flushed, looking as though he had consumed quite a bit of alcohol.

His footing was unsteady as he stumbled toward Feng Shi, throwing himself into her arms and wailing.

"Mother! Don't scare your son! What happened to you? I can't live without you—"

Huh???

Gu Tang was bewildered.

Wait, something about this situation seemed a bit off.

Once Feng Shi had caught her breath and saw her precious son wailing like this, she was overcome with grief as well

"My son—Mother is useless! I can't control your ungrateful second brother! He's a mess himself, yet he wants to drag you down into disgrace with him..."

Gu Liansheng seemed to have had too much to drink, and at this moment, he couldn't say anything else, only sobbing against Feng Shi's lap.

His crying was so heart-wrenching and soul-shattering that anyone who didn't know them would think Feng Shi had actually passed away!

Gu Liansheng cried so intensely that Feng Shi stopped complaining and began to cry uncontrollably while holding her son's head.

The rest of the Gu family, including her father, looked at this mother and son with complicated expressions.

They truly had no idea what they were crying about!

"Sister!" A knock came from outside the room, and Gu Ping'an called out softly toward the room.

(End of Chapter)